How to Get Freelance Jobs Through Guru.com

Guru.com provides freelancers with a convenient way to search for and bid on projects. Freelancers search for projects in their particular areas of expertise, bidding on those that interest them. When jobs are completed, payment is forwarded from Guru’s SafePay Escrow, a fund used to hold the payment until the work is done to the satisfaction of the customer. Free and paid memberships are offered, with paid memberships giving members an increasing number of bids per month and more search options.

Register with Guru.com. You’ll be able to choose from 17 categories, including web design, programming, architecture and accounting. You can choose up to five job categories. In addition to the usual name, address, user name and password information, you will also be asked to provide a resume and samples. If you have an instant messenger (IM) account, you can add this information to your profile and use IM to communicate with clients.

Choose a membership level. Benefits vary depending on which membership level you choose. Free basic membership allows you to place 10 bids every month. If you work on a project, Guru will deduct 10 percent of the total as a project fee if you are a basic member. At the Guru and Guru Vendor levels, you will receive 100 bids every 30 days and will only pay a 5 percent project fee. Both Guru, a membership for freelancers, and Guru Vendor, a membership for vendors and firms, require paid memberships.

Search for projects. If you are a basic member, you will be restricted to searching for projects that fit your profile, while Guru and Guru Vendors will find more projects open to them for bidding. Search results will provide a basic description of each job and allow you to place a bid. You’ll also be able to see when bidding ends and if this client has awarded any projects in the past.

Select or decline the project you have been awarded. You will be notified by email that you have won a project and will also receive a notation on the Project Tracker page of your profile. On the Project Tracker page, click on the “Awarded projects” tab and find the project you want to accept or decline. Under the status column, click either “Accept project” or “Decline project.”

Begin work on your project. When you have been notified that you have won the bid for a project, you can enter the Work Room and create a folder for the work you will do. The employer also accesses this area to upload files you will need for the project or to add comments to the work you have finished.

Create an escrow account. You’ll be given an employer billing code that you can use to create a SafePay escrow account for the agreed upon payment for the project. This step requires the employer to place the payment for the project in an escrow account, ensuring that the employer does have the money to pay you upon the completion of the project. If you click on the “Awarded projects” tab and then “Action,” you will see the “Create escrow” button. Clicking on this button will take you to the instructions for creating an escrow account.

Finish the job and send an invoice to the client. You can access this area by clicking on the “awarded projects” tab. Simply enter your client’s billing code, complete the appropriate information and submit. If you go to the “Manage invoices” page and click on “Invoice status,” you’ll be able to see when the invoice is paid. You can then request payment either by direct deposit, PayPal or check. There is a charge to receive a check.

Tips & Warnings

Guru’s Project Tracker allows you to follow the projects you have bid on and also alerts you when you have won a project. You can place any project on a Project Watch, useful in letting you know when bidding for a project is about to end.